Reform’s Camp Newman ‘Mostly Destroyed’ By Raging California Wildfires

Image by Getty Images

By Dave Goldiner October 10, 2017

The Reform movement’s Camp Newman in northern California has been virtually destroyed by wildfires raging across the state.

The camp said on its Facebook page that most of the buildings at the sprawling facility in Santa Rosa had been destroyed and fires were still burning.

At least 10 people were killed and 100 were missing in the deadly round of fast-moving blazes. Some 20,000 people have been evacuated.

All the staff at the camp site were evacuated on Sunday, and the Torah scrolls were also rescued, the Bay Area’s J. The Jewish News of Northern California reported.

Image by Camp Newman

“We take great comfort in knowing that all of our staff are safe,” the Facebook post read. “We are so grateful to the first responders and firefighters who attempted to save our camp buildings.”

Camp Newman bought the site in 1997. A new $4 million conference center was opened there last year. The camp serves some 1,400 children every summer.

Dave Goldiner is the Forward’s director of digital media. Dave is a veteran journalist who has spent two decades working at newspapers in the United States and Africa. A native New Yorker, Goldiner wrote for the New York Daily News, where he covered some of the biggest stories of our time, including the attacks of September 11, along with thousands of stories of hope and heartbreak. He also studied and worked in Southern Africa and has written for publications in South Africa and Zimbabwe. He holds masters degrees in journalism and public administration from Columbia University. Dave can be reached at [email protected], or follow him on Twitter @davegoldiner

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse..

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO